He was talking to Ynda, who was sitting at a table surrounded by several fawning male students.


    "Where did you hear that? It can''t be true," Ynda said, fiddling with her fork. She feigned surprise, but inwardly, she was already beaming with joy.


    "It''s true!" one of the boys insisted confidently. "You got the top score among the new Broadcasting majors, you speak well, and you have a great image. It makes perfect sense for them to choose you!"


    "My cousin''s on the student council," another boy added. "He''s the one who told me, so it should be reliable."


    Many high-level university officials would be attending the opening ceremony, so everything had to be perfect. Among all the freshmen, Ynda had the most public speaking experience and had even won several awards. There was no one more suitable for the role.


    Student council? Hearing that, a smirk touched Ynda''s lips. It seemed the news was real after all.


    "Just you wait," the boy continued his ttery, diligently twisting open a water bottle for her. "A professor will probably contact you about it in a few days."


    "I''ll wait and see, then," Ynda said with a nod. She nced at Juniper''s back, a wave of satisfaction washing over her as a triumphant smile spread across her face. So what if Juniper was the top schr? In the end, she would be the one shining at the opening ceremony!


    The thought of giving a speech in front of thousands of people made her tremble with excitement. She had to prepare well and win back all the attention Juniper had stolen from her.


    ...


    The afternoon training session began, and Farrell immediately started looking for ways to torment Juniper.


    "Juniper, your posture is incorrect," he dered, circling her with his hands sped behind his back, his eyes full of disdain. "The rest of you are dismissed for a break. She will continue to stand here. She can rest when her posture meets the standard."


    "What?"


    "The sun is so strong. How can she take it?"


    Murmurs of discontent rose from theputer science students nearby. "Besides, I thought her posture looked perfectly fine."


    "He''s totally doing this on purpose!" Queenie seethed, running over to J and shooting a death re at the instructor Mr. Schwartz finds out about this, he''ll break his legs! That''s it, I''m having Qadir tel Mr. Schwartz right now."


    Queenie spun around to leave, but J grabbed her arm.


    "What''s wrong?" Queenie asked, confused.


    "Well..." J bit her lip and


    whispered, "Mr. Schwartz definitely knows what''s happening to Juniper hasn''t stepped


    at Ere the has go


    in, it must mean it''s not necessary."


    "Besides," she added, "is Juniper the type to let herself be bullied?"


    Queenie paused, rubbing her nose. "Good point."


    The two of them crouched down nearby, watching Juniper intently. "Hey, let''s go get some ice cream," someone called over to Ynda.


    "No, thanks," Ynda replied, remaining seated as she cast a long, satisfied look at Juniper. She wasnt to miss such a spectacr


    A crowd was starting to form. No one could believe that the perfect-score schr


    was being punished by the instructor for improper posture.


    "Do you have anything to say for yourself?" Farrell sneered, stopping in front of Juniper. "Perfect-score schr."


    "I do!" Juniper dered, a faint smile ying on her lips.


    She does? Farrell raised an eyebrow. Had she finally cracked after just a few


    minutes? Was she ready to admit she was wrong?


    He had been a soldier for years; there wasn''t a recruit he couldn''t break. He was an expert at handling troublemakers like Juniper.


    "Speak," Farrell ordered, waiting for Juniper to apologize in front of everyone.


    But her next words made his face go pale.